With three of four on road, can Auburn basketball success continue after win vs Missouri?

AUBURN — Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl challenged his team before its game against Missouri on Tuesday.

He said in a news conference Monday the matchup was a "must-win" affair and the "biggest game of the year" due to how close of a race it is to a top-four seed in the conference standings, and with it a double bye in the SEC Tournament. The Tigers responded by throttling Missouri in Neville Arena, 89-56: "We needed this one and we got this for him," said K.D. Johnson, who scored 14 points in the first half.

"Even if they didn't respond, I would've understood just because they've had so much fatigue. ... But I'm glad they responded the way they did, and I'm glad they got some success," Pearl said. "But it really had nothing to do with my challenge. I think it had more to do with Ira Bowman and Mike Burgomaster putting a great game plan together.

"I think the culture and character of our program (mattered). Our guys care about trying to make history and they want to get to the NCAA Tournament. This helps, but we've still got work to do."

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That work continues at Vanderbilt on Saturday, one of three road contests the Tigers are tasked with dealing with over their next four games. After playing the Commodores, Auburn (18-8, 8-5 SEC) has Ole Miss at home on Feb. 22 before making trips to Lexington and Tuscaloosa for matchups against Kentucky on Feb. 25 and No. 1 Alabama on March 1.

Auburn's win over Missouri snapped a three-game losing slide the Tigers found themselves in, which included falling to the Crimson Tide in Neville Arena last Saturday. The loss to Alabama was the fifth loss in Auburn's previous six games, and the fourth decided by single digits in that stretch.

"Our guys are tired. ... You look at the road that we've had — at Texas A&M, at Tennessee and Alabama at home — those are great teams, physical teams," Pearl said. "(A) lot of travel. Then a short prep after the Alabama game. It was a tough couple of days. They'll get the day off tomorrow, and they've earned it."

Auburn is currently the No. 4 seed in the conference with an 8-5 mark against SEC opponents. Alabama, Texas A&M and Tennessee are first, second and third, respectively, but the Vols welcome the Crimson Tide to Knoxville on Wednesday.

There's a real chance the Tigers, who dropped a three-point game to the Vols on Feb. 4, will go into their matchup with Vanderbilt on Saturday (7:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network) tied for the No. 3 seed. Plus, there's still a matchup left with Tennessee in the final game of the regular season, which could have significant SEC implications if the teams' records match.

But that's in three weeks. For now, Pearl wants his team to get some rest for the upcoming stretch.

"I've got three more on the road," Pearl said. "We'll take tomorrow off, and I think they'll be fine for Saturday. But they definitely were tired tonight."

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Bruce Pearl on Auburn basketball schedule after win vs Missouri